Iran Clinic organises free diabetes screening
More than 500 people in about seven communities in Accra have been screened by the Iran Clinic as part of activities marking this year’s World Diabetes Day (WDD).
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The beneficiaries were from Adabraka, New Town, Asylum Down, Neoplan, Kokomlemle, Caprice, Odorna and its environs. Their blood pressure (BP) was checked. They were also educated on diabetes and nutrition.
WDD
World Diabetes Day (WDD) is celebrated annually on November 14.
The International Diabetes Federation (IDF) and the World Health Organisation (WHO) created the World Diabetes Day in 1991 in response to growing concerns about the escalating health threat posed by diabetes.
‘Healthy Living and Diabetes’ is the theme for 2014–2016. The Medical Director of Iran Clinic, Dr Masoud Maleki Birjandi, said the hospital embarked on a screening exercise in solidarity with the day.
He said the hospital, which performs mainly humanitarian services with support from the Iran Red Crescent, aimed at ensuring that people embraced preventive health care than curative.
He said the policy of the hospital and the Iran Red Crescent was centred on preventive health care.
To that end, he said, the hospital would start observing other health-related days such as the malaria and TB days, so as to help highlight their importance to the general public.
Prevention better than cure
Dr Birjandi said it had become imperative to prevent diseases as people the world over had limited resources and, therefore, needed to use them judiciously.
“With scarce resources, prevention is better than cure,” he said.
He said people would end up spending more money to cure diseases and, therefore, there was the need to prevent them through education. He said those who were found to be diabetic during the screening exercise were taken through counselling and nutrition.
He said the hospital was ready to partner health-based non-governmental organisations, adding that through collaboration, they would be able to achieve a lot in terms of quality health delivery for the people.
In all, three doctors, three nurses and two laboratory technicians participated in the exercise. Two people, Ms Rukaya Abdul Raman, a trader from Kanda, and Mr Eric Delita, a mechanic, said they participated in the free screening exercise to know their health status.
